The next day I wasn’t exactly singing in the shower or dancing around the house but I had something to look forward to. The hours couldn’t go by fast enough. We didn’t have a set time but it couldn’t be too early, I wasn’t planning on scaring him away.

We met up at a central place, in this case it was the garage, and we took it from there. It wasn’t much of a walk because we ended up at a park but that was fine too. Even though we had some idea of who the other was and couldn’t talk about our family lives because Lonwabo said talking about how he grew up was annoying. He claimed that he growing up as an only child wasn’t fun and that he was very lonely half the time.

He said he didn’t have much of a childhood to talk about. I let it go. We spoke about our futures and life goals and all the cliché things people who are still getting to know about each other talk about instead. Things were getting relaxed when his phone rang and interrupted us. I didn’t know who was on the other end but it sounded like they were angry about something.

“Okay, I am on my way.” He sighed and hung up.

He looked at me, “I have to go.”

I nodded and he ran all too quickly to notice the look of disappointment on my face.

He didn’t say anything all day. I assumed he felt bad so I called him. It took a while before he answered but he did eventually.

“Hey.”

“Hey, I’m sorry about earlier,” he started, “There was a situation I had to take care of.”

“It’s okay, I just wanted to check up on you.”

That’s when I heard it, the piercing screams. It sounded like a madhouse, kind of like there were twenty other people.

“What was that?” I asked him

“Nothing, that was the TV. I have to go, it’s movie hour.”

“You have movie hour with your parents??”

“No, it’s with…” he drifted. “Yes, it’s with my parents. For a second there I was embarrassed to tell you but then I remembered that I told you that I was an only child.”

“It’s okay.”

I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye because he hung up so quickly. I was left confused.

I mean, if his parents paid this much attention to him then why did he claim that his childhood was sad? Nothing added up but I wasn’t sure I was in a position to question him about it. I was just a girl he met in a taxi a week ago.

***

“Do me a favour and go buy some things from me at Shoprite.” That was my mom. “I will draw up a list.”

On my way to Shoprite, a man I had no memory of stopped me and told me to stay away.

“Stay away from what?” I was undoubtedly perplexed.

“That criminal boy you were walking with. He is bad news.” With that he walked away and left me to figure out what he meant by that.

As if on cue, there he was running from the security guards. He was holding an asthma pump and some medicine box, Asthavent, I’m guessing it’s what you put in the asthma pump. They couldn’t catch him but I was not about to let him out of my sight.

He didn’t see me but I was following him. When he reached a corner he started to slow down, I thought it was because he grew tired but then I saw a woman walk towards him, tears running down her face, in her arms a little girl who was struggling to breathe.

“It’s getting worse,” she wept “I called an ambulance.”

“I told you to wait for me.” By now he was crying too.

“Zolisa?” he probed

Nothing. The little girl did not reply but rather started taking slower, powerless breaths.

The ambulance arrived and took her away. By now everyone in the street was watching the two people crying and the other group of children behind them.

Children? I was so busy being drawn in the scene that I didn’t realise they were standing outside Safe Haven, an orphanage. He was an orphan. Those children were all orphans…even little Zolisa.

Slowly, the neighbours started walking back to their houses but I stood there, taking it all in. A little boy ran to me, “Are you joining our family?” He smiled, “We’ve got room for you too.”

Just as Lonwabo was going to get him he saw me. I didn’t know what to do, how to react or what to say. Neither did he.

Like I said, not freaking out is a decision, a smart one. I opened my arms and he walked right into them and cried. Short, controlled cries.

“Don’t cry, we’ll figure this out in the morning.” I said

“There’s nothing to figure out, I’m an orphan. I lied to you about my identity.” He looked at me.

“I figured that much out, I was talking about the giant pee stain on your pants. If you’re going to rob pharmacies, you’ve got to get your act together.”

He laughed, “So you’ll still be my friend?”

“Honey, with that much spunk, I should be asking you to be my man.”

The End

***

Have you ever loved a perfect stranger?